Penetrating Florida’s Microbrewery Market: What Kind of Insurance Will You Need?

Protect your brew—and your crew

There are more than 100 licensed microbreweries in Florida and that number continues to grow each month. If you’re the owner of one, you already know that your business has many unique intricacies that are important to address when it comes to insurance, including whether or not you have a tasting room and whether you’re exporting your product. While all microbreweries are different, there are some standards when it comes to insurance and other optional products that may be advisable, so here’s a guide that will help you determine what coverage you need and if what you already have in place is adequate.

General Liability

Like any business, there are certain risks you take on the moment you begin to manufacture and serve your product. A general liability policy will protect your business against loss associated with injuries or damages that occur at your brewery. In the event that someone slips and falls or gets injured in any other way while at your facility and either files a lawsuit or finds you legally liable, this policy will cover any costs, judgments or fees incurred.

Property insurance

When you own a brewery, you’ve already made a huge investment before you even open your doors—and that is in the form of all the equipment, the building and any other necessary items that are required to run your business. A property insurance policy is an absolute necessity to ensure that you are covered if anything unforeseen happens including:

• Fire

• Theft

• Vandalism

• Storm damage

A property policy will protect the property as a whole, your building and equipment in the event that you have to repair or replace anything as a result of any of these covered events. Without property insurance, a fire or a break-in or any other unexpected occurrences could result in a substantial loss.

Property in-transit

If your brewery is renting out kegs or you have a delivery service for your product, this type of policy (also called Inland Marine) will protect the merchandise while it’s in transit and off your premises. If you are doing shipments on a regular basis, this policy is highly recommended.

Liquor Liability Insurance

Do you have a tasting room, host brewery tours or are you participating in community events where you’ll be serving your beer? If so, this coverage is essential. It will protect you and your company against any claims that are filed related to the serving, consumption or sale of your product. It’s important to note that your general liability policy will not cover these types of claims when you are serving alcohol, so this policy takes over on events that are excluded from your general one.

Commercial Auto Insurance

A commercial auto policy is often overlooked by small businesses because they believe that their personal policy will cover them in the event of an accident. But the reality is, if you are using your personal vehicle or if you have trucks or vehicles you’re using strictly for business, you need a separate auto policy. With a commercial auto policy, anyone who is driving your vehicles (whether they’re owned by the business or leased) will be protected in the event of an accident including injuries and damages to the vehicle or someone else’s property.

Worker’s Compensation

You should have a worker’s compensation policy in place even before you hire your first employee. It is a requirement in the State of Florida and a necessity that will provide coverage for medical costs in the event that you or any of your employees are injured on the job and needs care.

If you’re the owner of a microbrewery in Florida, having the right insurance coverage is critical to eliminating many of the risks involved with your business. Be sure to review all these different types of coverages and contact Avante Insurance for a more in-depth analysis of your needs or guidance on the appropriate solutions.